Ascent to Alpha
by outside the crayon box
Summary: Olivia Ryan had such a terrible time at her previous public school (Copper Beech Middle) that she transferred to Octavian Country Day. She's hoping just to blend in and survive, more than she could ever ask at Copper Beech. But what happens when the reigning Alpha notices her as a potential friend, then mysteriously disappears? Will she be blamed, or will she rise to the challenge?
1. Chapter 1

"For God's sake, Olivia Grace Ryan, get your ass out of bed!" The angry voice of her once-again drunken mother echoed through the old intercom on her nightstand.

Olivia sighed. "I'm coming, Mom." She rose out of bed and walked into the bathroom, where she washed up and straightened her hair. Then she rubbed some pale pink Urban Decay gloss onto her lips, and dusted a spot of blush onto her pale cheeks. After dabbing a touch of mascara onto her lashes, she headed downstairs.

"I'm expecting breakfast," Mrs. Ryan told her daughter angrily from her slumped-over position at the kitchen counter. "I ask you to be in charge of meals once a week, and you can't manage a simple task such as that? What in hell are you good for?"

Olivia didn't respond. Her mother asked, or more like ordered, her to cook everything, every day. So she pulled some pans out of the cupboard and grabbed some pancake mix. Absentmindedly, she added milk and stirred in blueberries, just the way her mother liked it. Olivia wanted chocolate chips, but that didn't matter.

When they were ready, she flipped two onto each plate and sat down at the table to eat. "Where's Daddy?" she asked.

"Your lazy-ass shithole good-for-nothing father is already at work," she snapped. "I barely ever even see him anymore."

Olivia shrugged. She never really saw her dad either, and she liked it better that way. He was a tall, big man, with the worst temper she'd ever seen. "I need to get to school, Mom, and it's Michael's day off," she told her mother patiently. "Can you drive me?"

"Take the bus."

"Octavian Country Day doesn't have a bus," Olivia reminded her mother gently. "This isn't public school anymore."

"Fine, I'll bring you," she grumped.

"That's okay. I can just call-"

"I said I'll take you!"

She jumped. A slight thing, only 5'1, 95 pounds, and delicate, she had to be careful around her walking time bomb of a mother. "Thanks." She jogged upstairs and got dressed.

Somehow she'd talked her mother into getting her a credit card last year. After all, the Ryans had piles of money, and none of it ever seemed to get used. The house was always in shambles, there were no maids or servants except for their chauffeur, and her parents always dressed in increasingly shabby clothing.

With the card, she'd purchased new clothes, pretty accecssories, and genuine jewelry. She now dressed in all designer, hoping it would help her blend in at her new school. But she doubted it.

She dressed in skinny black Ella Moss jeans and slithered a soft, thin herringbone belt through the loops. Over that she zipped up a blue Juicy Couture hoodie with a black design and folded-over grey Uggs.

Then she crossed her fingers that no one would think she was copying them.

* * *

The first thing Olivia saw when she exited the car was a clump of girls giggling together in a circle. A brunette, a Latina, a fiery redhead, an All-American type, and a platinum-blonde.

She made her way carefully around them, giving them the widest berth possible. She knew girls like that. They were the reason she'd left Copper Beech Middle School last year.

But now she got to start over, a brand-new school, a brand-new wardrobe, and a brand-new life.

She just hoped history wouldn't repeat itself.

* * *

**So, is it interesting or horrible? I know it's, like, my fourth multi-chap, but I finished Story of Our Lives, and Happily Ever After? is already planned out. I just had this idea and it kept flitting around in my brain, so I figured I'd write it. Soon, there will be drama, but I'm just trying to establish her life in the first few chapters. **

**Please tell me what you think! Also, if you're under the opinion that I'm writing too many multi-chaps, tell me, and I'll hold one off until I finish something else. :)**

**R&R, please!**

**Heart ya,  
Joy**


	2. Chapter 2

Olivia paused before starting up the stone steps that would bring her inside Octavian Country Day School For Girls. This was the moment. Make it or break it.

With a deep breath, she lifted her head, hoisted her soft gray Coach purse higher on her shoulder, and clomped up the stairs. In front of her were two huge maroon double doors.

_Breathe_, she ordered herself. _It's okay, Ryan._

With renewed confidence, she pushed open the door and stepped inside.

The lobby was bustling with mostly underclassmen. Little girls who couldn't have been more than six were expertly handling the blue-and-white plastic machines on each side of the hall. They seemed to be inserting something, and then out popped a sheet of paper.

"Um, excuse me?" A bossy voice came from behind her. "Are you just planning awn standing here awl day?"

She whirled around, her cheeks fiery as she realized she was blocking the doorway. "Sorry," she murmured, letting the brunette and her group through.

"Really?" she heard the All-American-type laugh. "Who does she think she is?" Her strong voice floated back to within hearing distance of Olivia.

A sort of whimper escaped her mouth. Her stomach was beginning to hurt. Why did everyone hate her so much? And how did she know where her homeroom was so she could get her schedule?

She fingered her ID card, which boasted a picture of her with her long blonde hair spread over her shoulders, her piercing blue eyes staring into the camera, her mouth smiling, but sadly. It also gave basic information.

**NAME: OLIVIA GRACE RYAN.  
GRADE: 7  
AGE: 12  
HAIR COLOR** (as though they couldn't tell)**: BLONDE  
EYE COLOR: BLUE  
SKIN TONE: CAUCASIAN  
CURRENT CREDITS: 0  
TOTAL CREDITS: 0**

She stood examining the card thoughtfully. Something about it intrigued her, and she knew what is was. The credits. There was no way to update them as they were earned unless the card was magical. So the machines had to have something to do with it. Maybe...

Of course. Her schedule. She walked over to the row of kiosks until she found an unoccupied one. The machine looked easy enough to use. There was a slot in which to put in the card, and a bigger slot where her schedule could slide out.

The only thing out of place was a purple crown drawing. In diamonds, it spelled out TPC. And around it were five letters, M, A, D, K, and C. TPC? MADKC? Those weren't even words. So she shrugged it off as graffiti and inserted her card. It popped back out at her.

On the screen, it stated: **NOT A REGISTERED MEMBER OF THE PRETTY COMMITTEE.**

What?

She tried again.

**NOT A REGISTERED MEMBER OF THE PRETTY COMMITTEE.**

"Um, excuse me." It was the same voice as before. The hall fell deathly silent. One machine whirred and went blank. A girl who looked to be in fourth grade gathered up her schedule and ran, her sandals thwick-thwacking against the cool marble of the floor. "This is ours."

"It's for public use."

"Does it _look_ like its for public use?" giggled the brunette, gesturing to the crown symbol. "We're the Pretty Committee. You're nawt in it. I suggest you scamper."

Now or never. "I suggest you don't tell me what to do," she snapped back.

A collective gasp went up from the girls watching.

She advanced, her eyes shining, her ID card in her hand. She shoved it at Olivia. "Do you see who I am?" she spat. "My name is Massie Elizabeth Block, only daughter of Kendra and William Block. Do nawt cross me."

"I'll do what I want."

The Latina stepped forward. She was taller than all of them. Olivia's eyes were basically level with the girl's cleavage. She began to speak, but the brunette shot her a glance.

"Feisty," the latter appraised, like a tiger inspecting her kill. "We must give credit where credit is due, girls. Do you know who we are, Olivia?"

"How do you know my name?"

"Um, duh." She rolled her eyes at the name on the card in Olivia's hand. "Olivia Grace Ryan, right?"

She nodded, unsure of what was coming next.

"We are The Pretty Committee, also knows as TPC, also known as the hawtest, smartest, wealthiest girls in Westchester. Clear?"

She swallowed.

"Right," the girl whose name was Massie continued, "I'm Massie, the Alpha."

"I'm Alicia, the Beta," stated the Latina, stepping up next to Massie.

"I'm Dylan, the Gamma." Redhead.

"I'm Kristen, the Delta." All-American.

"I'm Claire, the Epsilon." Platinum blonde.

"Nice to meet you." Olivia had no clue what they were planning, but since nobody was daring to talk, the snickering grins on the girls' faces said it all. She needed to get out, and fast. They obviously knew she didn't belong here, and they were about to kick her out, make her a social pariah. Mentally, she slapped herself. She couldn't even survive for one day?

"Do you want to sit with us at lunch?" The offer came and went so quickly, like a spark, that Olivia barely had time to register it.

"Uh-"

"Don't take too long," the Latina warned. It was the first time anyone other than Massie had spoken. "We've never done this before."

A smirk played at the corners of the brunette's mouth. "Take it or leave it," she said sweetly, her strange amber eyes gleaming, her voice like a bell.

The voice echoed in Olivia's brain as she argued with herself. It could be a prank (but they might actually like her). It's all a setup (what if they're just trying to be nice)? Why would a clique like that just take her in? She knew these girls, not personally, but she knew them all the same. She knew what they were like. She knew this wasn't worth it, and yet:

_Take it or leave it, take it or leave it, take it or leave it._

She took it.


	3. Rules

Olivia sat alone in Consumer Studies, the poster child for Shy New Girl, watching the seconds, then minutes, flow by. _Tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock-_ Bring!

She scraped back her chair, tucked her books under her arm, and followed her noise to the cafe, where she spotted the five girls right away. She hurried over.

"Hi!" She put on a bright smile.

"Hey," the Latina (Alexa, Alicia, Alyssa, Arianna?) replied, looking bored. She was picking at her bare salad, making a face.

"Yo." The redhead, who was scarfing down a yogurt parfait.

"Hi." A real smile from the white-blonde girl. But the second it was there, it was gone. And with a fearful look at the brunette, she'd lowered her head to her turkey sandwich and continued eating silently.

She sat down and began to unpack her brown paper bag that held the pasta she'd made herself this morning, waiting for Massie to acknowledge her. But when she did, Olivia wasn't ready.

"We're the Pretty Committee," the Alpha reiterated, as though she could tell Olivia still didn't get it. "Every year since we were eight, we've picked a new member and let them try to earn our respect throughout the year. If they do, they're in. If they don't-" she waved her hand at a table near the garbage cans and shrugged carelessly. "As you can see, the only girl who's ever accomplished this is Kuh-laire, last year, in sixth grade."

"Kuh-laire," Olivia repeated carefully, wanting to get it right.

"Um, no," Alicia snapped. "You cannawt use our language. Only registered members of the Pretty Committee get that privilege. Right, Mass?"

"Right," Massie agreed, glaring at Olivia stonily. "Her name is Claire. Is that clear?"

"Uh-huh."

"Thank you. These are our rules." She pushed a laminated sheet of paper at Olivia. It had single-spaced type all the way to the bottom, where it continued onto the back. "Read. Any questions, ask Kuh-laire. As the newest member of the Pretty Committee, she is the one who has to deal with you."

Shamefully, she lowered her eyes to the paper, not quite believing what she was seeing.

* * *

**_THE PRETTY COMMITTEE'S BASIC RULES_**

**1. Never question the authority of someone above you. The Alpha always gets the last word and the final desicion.  
2. Boys are always awf-limits unless you are given express permission from the Alpha to pursue.  
3. Only the Alpha may use Glossip Girl lip gloss.  
4. Each girl has their own designer (Massie-Louis Vuitton; Alicia-Ralph Lauren; Dylan-Ella Moss; Kristen-Oscar di la Renta; Kuh-laire-Juicy Couture). Never wear someone else's claimed brand.  
5. Let the Alpha do the talking unless you are previously told otherwise.**

_**THE PRETTY COMMITTEE'S DRESS CODE**_

**1. As stated, you may nawt wear someone else's claimed brand. However, you may only wear designer. If you are questioning any article of clothing, you probably shouldn't wear it. UN-approved designers are Aeropostale, Hollister, Abercrombie&Fitch, TopShop, Wet Seal, Pac Sun, H&M, and Forever 21.  
2. You must always have a fresh manicure (within two days). Approved salons are Bliss, Serenity, Amy's, and Lena's, if your stylist is unavailable.  
3. Every day, you must have a different hairstyle. You may nawt repeat for at least five days.  
4. Always take a digital picture of your outfit and download it onto your computer, to avoid repeats or stolen looks.  
5. You must consult the Alpha's personal stylist for your own look, then hire one of his assistants to be your own live-in stylist.  
6. Make sure your outfit is always rated a 9 or higher.**

_**THE PRETTY COMMITTEE'S GROUP ACTIVITIES RULES**_

**1. Shopping trips are mandatory. They will occur once a week at the Westchester Mall, from after school until 6:00 sharp. If you do nawt have someone to pick you up, tell the Alpha beforehand for a ride home.  
2. Any activites or excursions commanded by the Alpha are mandatory. This could be anything from cutting class to seeing one of Merri-Lee Marvil's shows.  
3. Every summer, all the members of the Pretty Committee attend sleep-away camp in the Poconos. (Massie-Horseback Riding; Alicia-Volleyball; Dylan-Field Hockey; Kristen-Soccer; Kuh-laire-Gymnastics). Almost any sport is available. If you are still in by summer, you must pick one.  
4. If the Alpha is unable to attend a trip for any reason, everyone must obey whoever she puts in charge. Usually, it will be the Beta.  
5. If the Beta commands a trip, the Alpha decides whether it is mandatory for everyone, mandatory for some members, optional, or nawt going to happen.  
6. If you lose Pretty Committee membership aw****n a trip, whether it is at the Westchester Mall or in Palm Springs, California, it is up to you to figure out how to get home. The Alpha's driver will nawt bring you, and/or your plane ticket will be cancelled. **

**_THE PRETTY COMMITTEE'S DIET AND EXCERISE PLAN_**

**1. Red meat is banned.  
2. You must (privately) schedule a meeting with the Alpha to determine the best diet for you.  
3. Maximum height/weight requirements are as follows: 5 feet-105 pounds; 5'2-110 pounds; 5'4-120; 5'6-125 pounds.  
4: The Alpha's home gym will be open to any Pretty Committee member any day, any time. You must work out for a total of eight hours a week. SPORTS DO NAWT COUNT. You must keep a log detailing which workout you did, for how long, and which personal trainer assisted you. You must also keep track of the weight you gained or lost. Personal trainers will always be availale to assist you.**

_**FRIDAY NIGHT SLEEPOVERS**_

**1. These are absolutely mandatory.  
2. These**** include awl Pretty Committee members and no one else.  
3. 95% of the time, the Alpha will have everything needed for the sleepover. You only need to bring an extra supply if specifically asked.  
4. The items you must bring are: a sleeping bag, pajamas, an outfit for the next day, a bathing suit, a toothbrush, a hairbrush, makeup, and ID card.  
5. Anything discussed at a sleepover is confidential and may nawt be shared with anybody else, including a Pretty Committee member who did nawt attend the sleepover for any reason other than sickness or lengthy family vacation.  
**

_**GOSSIP POINTS**_

**1. The maximum number of points you can receive is 20 for one piece of gossip.  
2. Every girl in the Pretty Committee must decide what they think the gossip is worth, and the average will be counted.  
3. You may only gossip FOR POINTS if everyone is present. If you are at a Friday Night Sleepover and someone is nawt there for whatever reason, you may nawt gossip for points.  
4. The Alpha decides in what order everyone presents their gossip. Everybody goes once, and then, if you have more gossip, you may go again.  
5. Gossip Points for the week will be totaled the morning after the Friday Night Sleepover. Whoever has the most is owed $80 from the Alpha, $60 from the Beta, $50 from the Gamma, $30 from the Delta, $10 from the Omega, and $5 from any girl trying to earn Pretty Committee status. The money goes toward the winner's own personal shopping trip, which will happen Saturday, directly before lunch.**

_**RATINGS**_

**1. Every morning awn the drive to school, your outfit will be rated.  
2. As with Gossip Points, the ratings you receive from each girl will be averaged and recorded. After every month, your scores will be totaled and, if you have the highest average, you will receive a mark on your ID card. After five marks, the next Pretty Committee-sponsored party will be up to you to schedule, plan, and set up however you choose.**

_**PARTIES**_

**1. We only use one party planner, and her name is Landon Dorsey.  
2. As stated, whoever has five rating marks works with Landon to put together the party.  
3. If no one has five, everyone works with Landon and the party is held at the Alpha's house.**

_**OTHER**_

**1. You must always have a phone awn you.  
2. You must practice Pretty Committee drills whenever you are in private and have a chance. These must become second nature and will be explained.  
3. At the next Friday Night Sleepover, new members will be taught drills, given an ID card, and will learn about Pretty Committee customs, traditions, and inside jokes.**

* * *

"Does it awl make sense?" Massie demanded when she saw Olivia was finished.

"Um..." She didn't know what to say. This whole thing was so ridiculous.

"Clearly nawt. You are still wearing both Ella Moss and Juicy Couture. Those go in the trash."

"But what am I supposed to wear?"

"Run awn down to the Lost&Found in the nurse's office. She has stuff. But don't associate with us until the Friday Night Sleepover. My address is 30 Cherry Street. I expect you to show up promptly at 6:00. _Comprenez-vous__?_"

"Wait!"

"What?"

"What do you mean, my ID card? My school ID?"

"No. You will be awarded a Pretty Committee ID card at the next Friday Night Sleepover." The brunette trailed a French-manicured finger over the last line. "Duh."

"O_kay_! And, um, _drills_?"

Once again, Massie rolled her eyes at the last line.

"Okay, fine, I get it. Everything at the sleepover, right?" She was trying her hardest to sound chipper and eager.

But the girls had left their trays, risen in unison, and walked away.

* * *

**You don't have to read the rules if you don't want to. But they really do show they crazy tyranny of the PC, and the way they work, so they might be interesting. I find them pretty funny, but then again, I wrote them.**

**Heart ya,  
Joy**

**P.S. In the next two chapters, the drama will build.**


End file.
